Over the years, it has often been suggested to me that Second World War
bombs created some of the ponds in the park. The idea is very easily disproved
because all of the ponds within the park are shown on maps prior to the
war, most of them hundreds of years before the war. There is one exception,
a very small pond in Hatters wood that could conceivably be put down to
a high explosive bomb, but it would be very difficult to prove.

During the Second World War, several bombs fell in and around Dagnam
Park, High explosive bombs probably up to 1000lb are recorded dropping
in the park and the very much lighter incendaries are recorded by Dorina
Neave herself. As far as is known none of these bombs have left visible
traces.

Probably the most significant “bomb” to land in the park was a V2 rocket
which exploded on the 21st January 1945 at 3.17pm, between The Priory
and Dagnams, it is that explosion which is blamed for the structural damage
to Dagnams.

According to "Hitler v Havering", compiled by Peter Watt it
was in fact 100 yards SE of Priory (I think this must be in error and
should read NE) Two houses and farm buildings seriously damaged and
two serious injuries. It was much closer to the Priory than to Dagnams.
A memoir by the vicar
of St Thomas's Church, Canon A. P. A. Gaze states that "significant
damage was caused to the Priory". The explosion left a crater measuring
43' x 15' the remains of which can still be seen today.

V2s carried about 2,200 lbs of high explosive, which detonated after
the rocket had penetrated the ground, depending on ground conditions they
could cause a crater up to 30 metres in diameter. The 1946 aerial photograph
shows the crater of the Dagnam Park rocket. The 1999 picture shows the
crater still visible from the air. On the ground, a very obvious depression
is still clearly visible. This depression about 30' in diameter and apx
2' deep would contain water in the winter. The retention of water has
led to the colonisation of marginal water plants which pick out the depression
from the surrounding meadow grasses, thistles etc. This “pond” is not
shown on any maps prior to 1945 whereas all of the ponds in the park of
a similar size are shown.

The caretaker of Dagnams who stole the lead from the roof is usually
blamed for the demise of the Dagnams mansion, some blame the council of
the time, but it may well be the case that Hitler had something to do
with it............. Del Smith

I suspect that an attempt was made to fill the crater shortly
after the rocket exploded but the soil has subsided over the years and
today the depression is clearly visible.

Alan Elkins who lived in Harold Hill through the fifties and
sixties has recently informed me (2012) that he was a friend of the tenant
of the North Lodge, he states that this pond/depression was on his route
to the lodge and it was an obvious feature in the early sixties, so my
guess that an attempt may have been made to fill it is probably incorrect.

It could simply be that I tended to walk the fields along
the hedgerows and consequently overlooked it. .........Del Smith

Below the crater as it can be seen today (2004).

And below by Belinda Bearman in January 2018

The V2 crater in 1946

The V2 crater in 1999

Drone image taken by Tim Doman from 400' in 2017.

Peter Adams has kindly provided the photograph opposite of rocket fragments that he detected around the site he states...

"I collected these 25 years ago in the early 90s when the field was ploughed for the first time since the war. During the early 90s after Farmer Quilter retired he sublet his farm to Scott Bird who dragged the fallen trees off of the three fields between the Perch pond and the Priory and ploughed it all to grow corn. The fallen horse chestnut trees at the back of the Perch pond included. The fields were small and irregular but he gave it a go for a couple of years.

Another interesting thing that showed up after the ploughing was the gravel path that is on the 1660s painting, it went on past the Perch pond and petered out near the large Oak tree. I asked Mr Quilter about the V2 and he said they were in the milking shed and all the dust come down from the rafters with the explosion. He also mentioned the V1 flying bomb that demolished Cummings hall farm had also shifted his dads bungalow on its damp proof foundations"

A curious story opposite, could this have been the V2 crater and who were the boys?